HOUSTON - Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd. is eager to bring the NBA’s all-star weekend to Toronto in a few years.

“We have thrown our hat in the ring for 2016 , did a terrific presentation for the league to promote Toronto as a location, and absolutely want to host it,” MLSE chief operating officer Tom Anselmi told the Sun, confirming a report.

New Orleans will play host next year and NBA Commissioner David Stern and commish-in-waiting Adam Silver said Saturday that either Brooklyn or New York would get the 2015 weekend.

Toronto likely will face competition in the form of the Cavaliers. The franchise has interest in getting the game back for the first time since 1997, either in 2016 or 2017.

Silver said he was in Cleveland last week and said “we would love to return to Cleveland.” The 1997 game featured a presentation where 49 of the NBA’s top 50 players were celebrated.

Do you like the new-look Raptors heading into the 2013-14 NBA season?
Yes, new GM made great moves
No, they will still be a terrible team
Unsure what to make of it